Thankfully, the walk from Campobecerros to Laza was downhill, pretty much the entire way, and partially on a paved road. The walking was beautiful, and relatively easy. Today, I was particularly grateful for the gentle walk.

At some point in the past few days, much to my chagrin, I found myself back in pace with the posse of pilgrims I’d met earlier.

Generally, there are only so many places along the route to stay, and once pilgrims are on the route, they wind up seeing the same people night after night, unless someone is injured and stays an extra night in one town (albergue rules state that pilgrims cannot stay more than one night unless injured); goes only a short distance; or pays extra to stay in a private room.

Like this:

Sadly, trying to follow the nice Window Lady’s advice (“Arriba! Arriba! Todo directo!” Up, Up! Straight ahead!) to the hostel proved, as usual, futile. With my typical self-concious trepidation, I stopped one of the few cars there was to ask where if they knew where the albergue was and the Driver, just like the Window Lady, simply pointed.

Not helpful.

And since the town was virtually empty, there was no one left to ask. So, I just kind of wandered around, continuing on up, up, up, hoping to just stumble upon it.

And then, finally, finally, I found the alburgue, or what I presumed to be the alburgue. It was a large, incongruous building at the top of a hill, sort of overlooking the town, next to a closed bakery and down the street from a playground.

Hi! I’m your friendly neighborhood Albergue!

There was absolutely NOBODY there. I mean, nobody.

“Helloooooo?” I enquired, pushing the hanging plastic flaps to the side. “Haaaaaalo?”

I entered what appeared to be a deserted community center. I followed signs upstairs to a large, clean, and equally deserted dorm room with room for 20 pilgrims. I put my bag down, and heard it echo across the walls.

I can not overstate the creepiness of such a large room when you’re the only one in it! It felt vaguely like the aliens had landed, sucked up all the people from the Earth, and somehow, I had missed it.

More likely, the distance from the last town was simply too short for the more robust pilgrims, and they’d all sauntered or whizzed on past in a hurry to get to the next town before nightfall. And so here I was, in Calzadilla de Tera, alone.

Being a city girl, I was a bit worried about my bag being stolen, but, seeing there was nobody there to actually steal anything, I unpacked some things onto a choice bed, and took the valuables with me for a stroll, leaving the rest there. I made my way to the playground, where, finally! Signs of life! Two pimply middle-schoolers were hanging out on the swings, being particularly loud and obnoxious once they say me, showing off as I wrote in my journal.

Eventually, the sun began to set. The kids left, the bakery opened their doors, a group of senior citizens showed up at the community center to play cards and socialize. I bought a baguette and shyly went back to the albergue, stopping for a moment at the door to the rec room, considering joining the older folks for some company but in the end just too timid to approach them. I went upstairs to my large, empty room, and fell asleep to the sound of their laughter, with the wind keeping me company as I slept through the night, alone in my dormitory for twenty.

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1000K on the Camino de Santiago: Via de la Plata

"Once Around the Room" follows one American woman's two journeys on the Way of St. James, a pilgrimage route in Spain. Her 2012 mission is to carry the prayers of others step by step the 1000K to Santiago de Compostela. Add yours using the link above! ~Thank you, and Buen Camino! x ~

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